S.J. Quinney College of Law

S.J. Quinney College of Law
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Name	S.J. Quinney College of Law
Established	1913
Type	Public
Parent	University of Utah
Dean	Elizabeth Kronk Warner
City	Salt Lake City
State	Utah
Country	United States
Website	law.utah.edu

S.J. Quinney College of Law is the professional graduate law school of the University of Utah, located in Salt Lake City. Established in 1913, it is the only public law school in the state of Utah and is named for prominent Utah attorney and philanthropist S.J. Quinney. The college is recognized for its strengths in environmental law, natural resources law, and criminal law, consistently ranking among the top public law schools in the United States.

History

The institution was founded in 1913 as the University of Utah College of Law, following earlier legal education efforts in the state. Its early development was shaped by figures like John A. Widtsoe, then president of the University of Utah. The school moved to its first dedicated building, the LeRoy Cowles Building, in 1930. A significant transformation occurred in 1978 when it was renamed in honor of S.J. Quinney, a distinguished alumnus and benefactor. Major milestones include achieving membership in the Association of American Law Schools in 1930 and full American Bar Association accreditation. The college relocated to its current, state-of-the-art facility in 1975, a building later renamed the Robert H. and Katherine B. Garff Law Building.

Academics

The college offers the Juris Doctor degree, as well as several dual-degree programs in conjunction with other colleges at the University of Utah, such as the J.D./MBA and J.D./MPP. It provides a robust curriculum with particular depth in environmental law, natural resources law, criminal law, and intellectual property law. Students gain practical experience through clinics like the Criminal Justice Clinic, the Innocence Clinic, and the Environmental Law Clinic. The college also offers advanced legal degrees, including a Master of Laws and a Master of Legal Studies, and publishes the Utah Law Review and the Journal of Law and Family Studies.

Campus and facilities

The college is housed in the Robert H. and Katherine B. Garff Law Building, a modern facility on the campus of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. The building contains the S.J. Quinney Law Library, one of the largest legal collections in the Interior West, featuring extensive resources in water law and natural resources law. Other key features include the Moot Courtroom, which hosts competitions like the National Moot Court Competition, the Legal Writing Center, and the Wallace Stegner Center for Land, Resources and the Environment. The building is situated near other major university facilities like the Eccles Health Sciences Library and Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Centers and institutes

The college hosts several interdisciplinary research centers that drive its scholarly mission. The Wallace Stegner Center for Land, Resources and the Environment is a preeminent center for the study of environmental law and policy, hosting an annual symposium. The Center for Law and Biomedical Sciences explores issues at the intersection of law, medicine, and ethics. The Criminal Justice Center focuses on reform and empirical research, while the International Center for Law and Religion Studies engages in global work on religious freedom. These centers frequently collaborate with entities like the Natural Resources Defense Council and the American Civil Liberties Union.

Notable alumni and faculty

Alumni have achieved prominence in diverse fields, including former United States Senator Jake Garn, former Governor of Utah Norman H. Bangerter, and former president of the American Bar Association, William H. Neukom. The federal judiciary is represented by judges like Dee Benson of the United States District Court for the District of Utah. Notable faculty have included former dean Scott M. Matheson Jr., who later served as Governor of Utah, and legal scholar Erik Luna. The college's Wallace Stegner Center has been directed by influential scholars such as Robert B. Keiter.

Rankings and reputation

The college is consistently ranked among the top 50 law schools nationally by U.S. News & World Report, often placing in the top 25 among public institutions. Its environmental law program is frequently ranked within the top 15 nationally. The Princeton Review has recognized it for best quality of life and best professors. The college is known for its strong bar passage rates in Utah and high employment outcomes, with graduates securing positions at major firms like Parsons Behle & Latimer, clerkships with judges on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, and roles in agencies such as the United States Department of the Interior and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Category:University of Utah Category:Law schools in Utah Category:Educational institutions established in 1913 Category:Salt Lake City